Merkel's conservatives plunge to 39% amid tax scandal - poll

PanARMENIAN.Net - Angela Merkel's conservatives plunged three points to 39 percent in a leading opinion poll on Wednesday as a tax evasion scandal embroiled a powerful ally of the German chancellor and the conservative party, according to Reuters.

The weekly Forsa opinion poll for Stern magazine and RTL television found the Christian Democrats (CDU) and their Bavarian sister party, the Christian Social Union (CSU), falling an unusually steep three points to their lowest level this year.

The CDU/CSU's coalition partners, the Free Democrats (FDP), were unchanged at five percent for a total of 44 percent. The coalition is seeking re-election in September. Movements in the Forsa poll are usually just one or two points in any week.

The center-left opposition was also unchanged in the Forsa poll at 37 percent with the Social Democrats (SPD) on 23 percent and the Greens on 14 percent. The Left party rose one to eight percent and fringe parties under five percent also gained.

Last week one of Germany's most admired sports managers, Bayern Munich president Uli Hoeness, voluntarily reported himself to authorities in a tax evasion investigation that exposed the government to criticism it is lenient on tax cheats.

The 61-year-old Hoeness said he had alerted tax authorities in January that he held a Swiss bank account. Merkel, who knows Hoeness personally and has sought his advice on business issues, felt let down by him, her spokesman said.

Merkel is seeking a third term and the opposition SPD and Greens are trying to paint her as soft on white-collar crimes, especially tax evasion, a major campaign issue. Merkel is running against SPD candidate Peer Steinbrueck, who led a crackdown on tax havens when he was German finance minister.